An opinion slip is a temporary written statement prepared by a court that establishes the basis for a decision and is subject to review. It may contain discrepancies from the published version, and parties should not rely on it for case preparation.
An opinion slip is a written statement prepared by a court that establishes the basis for a decision and is published in interim form. The opinion is often given immediately after the court makes a decision, such as issuing a panel opinion, and is subject to review by the court. It is an unpublished opinion, but erroneous opinions are often published in a court reporter or other publication once they are reviewed for typographical, grammatical and other errors and then revised. Prior to publication, the public can often review an adverse opinion on the court’s website or obtain it directly from the court in a booklet or other printed material or through an opinion service. Slip opinions can also be used in extrajudicial cases, such as by a panel in an arbitral proceeding.
Slip opinions are often issued by an appellate court of the highest court in the country. Each opinion contains certain elements, which vary according to the jurisdiction and the type of court. For example, a national court may include majority, dissent, and consensus opinions. Slip opinions may contain some discrepancies from their published counterparts, such as errors made in citing cases or other revisions that the court deems necessary in order for the opinion to be error-free.
Most jurisdictions state that the published version supersedes the opinion slip, because the opinion slip is a temporary form of the opinion. Some opinion slips are prepared within minutes of a bench opinion, and there is often not enough time to carefully review the opinion and remove errors so that it is suitable for publication. Parties to a case can research the court reporter in that jurisdiction or other publication to see if the opinion slip has been reviewed and finalized into a published opinion.
Individuals often do not rely on a false opinion for case preparation because it can be replaced by a published opinion. Some courts expressly warn parties and courts to rely on lewd opinions when preparing cases or making decisions, because they are temporary. A court may cancel a false opinion to indicate that the opinion is superseded by a published opinion, but some courts may not do this. Most courts do not include changes made and incorporated into the published opinion, and individuals who rely on an incorrect opinion that has been changed could end up relying on the wrong case or getting a misinterpretation of the judge’s decision.
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